REMEMBRANCE DAY 2022
I share a poem by my friend David Easter from Edinburgh Scotland.
Photo by Michael Williams
The Poppy Seller
As I raced around the corner,
In a hurry for my train
I saw the poppy seller
His old face was full of sadness
His back still ramrod straight
His mind no doubt remembering
The absence of his mates.
Those cheery lads he'd marched with
Those lads who were no more,
I glanced at the station clock
The time was flying by
I really needed to hurry
So I daren't catch his eye
For I'd be cornered there for sure
Standing in the rain
While he told me all those stories
And bored me once again.
As I dithered for a moment
Trying to sneak by
I saw the poppy seller
Wipe a tear from his eye
And I looked at all his poppies
And began to feel ashamed
His mates had given me the freedom
To be hurrying for that train.
So I stepped across the street
Shook him by the hand
I'd catch a later train
(my boss would understand ).
We talked of all the lads
Left in foreign fields
Determined to make a stand
Determined not to yield.
The poppy seller smiled
As he remembered every one
Those cheery lads he'd marched with
Those who'd not returned
He stood there in the rain
His back still ramrod straight
Selling blood red poppies
In memory of his mates.
J D Easter 2017
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